Caregivers of Patients With Dementia in Chinese Mainland

Abstract

Objective: We aimed to systematically search and summary the publications from 1990 to 2012 on Chinese dementia caregivers to understand the development in this field. Methods: We searched Pubmed and Chinese medical databases for all the original publications on the dementia caregivers in Chinese mainland until December 31st, 2012. Results: 126 papers involved 117 studies with 11178 participants were analyzed. The earliest study on Chinese caregivers with dementia patients was published in 1990. Most studies (92%) were reported in Chinese. 85% of studies were published between 2006 and 2012, while 42% were carried out in the most developed regions. Conclusions: In spite of the late start, the number of publications on Chinese dementia caregivers has rapidly increased since 2006. However, the quality of studies is still need to improve in sample size, intervention and outcome design. More attentions, policies and funds should be given to support the future study in dementia caregivers.